Too many times I've heard "I wanted an easy major, so that's why I picked communication" and similar sentiments. To a hard-working communication major, this can be a very frustrating statement for several reasons.
The idea behind this thinking is that it's all about speaking in front of people and easy tests. Unfortunately, many get halfway through their college career before realizing that that is not the case after your standard Introduction to Public Speaking course.
Communication studies include marketing strategies, yes, but there is so much else involved. This major also includes public speaking, technical writing skills, active listening, conflict resolution, research techniques, non-verbal cues and many more skills that are essential to any career. Communication is actually a lot like math in that it is used in every job in some way.
Many communication classes also include very difficult subject matter and projects in order to prepare you for the business world. In a level 300 communication class I took, the class was split into groups of 3-4 students and given the responsibility of teaching the lesson for the week as well as involving a class activity, discussion questions, videos that demonstrate subject matter and published articles that tie into the material. Group projects are an essential of every communication class; this alone can discourage students from pursuing this degree.
The amount of work required to maintain a high GPA with a communication major can be overwhelming. Projects such as multiple 6-10 page papers due every semester for each class, at-home research, writing and memorizing entire 20-minute speeches, and so on are very common. If you don't mind a little work outside of the classroom, it's really not too bad.
There are so many job possibilities within this major that it can be challenging to choose where you want to go with it as well. Just to name a few, there is Broadcast Journalism, Public Relations, Public Speaking, Recruiting Management, Sales, Marketing Research and Publications. These are all very possible job options.
With that said, this is not to discourage future communications students at all from pursuing this area. Having a Bachelor of Arts is highly beneficial to every other area of your life and you will take these life skills with you anywhere you choose to go. You'll also meet new people often and there is always a huge potential for a great pay scale, depending on which market you go into. I'm certainly happy that I chose to follow communications.
